Ice and avalanche conditions for the more popular ice routes in Rocky Mountain National Park are updated regularly by Eli Helmuth;  Estes Park resident, IFMGA licensed mountain guide and AIARE trained avalanche educator and forecaster.

April 29th Conditions:

Believe it or not, ice season is again in full-swing in RMNP and a climbing tour this weekend to the upper Odessa Gorge where we ascended Notchtop along with a day of mixed climbing on the north face of the east buttress on Hallett gave us a good view of the myriad of ice and mixed climbs that are currently in great shape in the high country.  Unfortunately, my camera wasn't functioning on one of those days, so you'll have to take me on my word that the east face of Notchtop is looking in great shape (below is a photo from last year in similar conditions) and the mixed route New Beginnings and a few other 40m pitches to the right of it have apparently just formed in the last week and they are some of the best ice pitches I've seen in the park in a while. 

In a bit of a spindrift above the mixed crux on the "Hummingbird Arete" on the north face of the lower east buttress on Hallett Peak during an AMGA alpine guide training on 4/26/08.

This was another winter-like week in Estes and Rocky Mountain National Park with more than six inches of fresh snow falling in the upper valleys of the park and wind -drifted areas had up to a foot of total accumulation.  Moderate to high winds have formed slabs and these should be evident as they are the primary very white colored snow on the slopes.  The skiing has been pretty ideal although there are patches everywhere of the old snow surface which is firm and makes for great cramponing but icy skiing conditions.

Wind speeds recorded this week at the Niwot Ridge Meteorological Station at 11,500' on the Continental Divide just south of RMNP

The winds have been cold this last week and mostly constant from the Northwest where big storm systems are pounding the Pacific coastline and we are feeling the effect of these northern storms as the new snow has been very cold powder and just the other day up on Notchtop, I was climbing in 6 upper body layers including two shells and a down jacket, goggles, face mask, 3 leg layers including shells and just able to feel the hands and function while climbing some dry 5.7 pitches of rock on the south face of this striking tower.

The south and east faces of Notchtop Mountain in May 2007 and in very similar condition to what this inviting summit is currently showing.  The ice through the crux pitches looks good at the moment and the snow is mostly firm due to wind scouring and avalanche sluffing.  The cornices at the top of the face present an unknown threat as they may or may not collapse on any given day or week or season?  Heat can be a major issue on this classic route and it should be avoided when temperatures exceed freezing or the sun is strong and creating a thermal oven on this face.

Heat related avalanche danger on southeast to west aspects will be an issue in the weeks to come as the peaks start the "shedding season" when they lose much of their winter coating through a continuous process of heat-caused "point-release" avalanches.  Avoiding these spots in the heat of the day (noon-3pm) would be helpful in reducing this somewhat predictable risk.  Ice climbing should be generally avoided in the strong sunlight or when temperatures are exceeding freezing as ice can quickly degrade in these atmospheric conditions.  Very early starts and an eye on the weather will be key to survival in this "shoulder season" in the mountains.

Temperatures recorded at the Bear Lake Snotel Site this last week show  have been mostly below freezing and combined with a cold wind and new snow, these have been ideal conditions for the formation of alpine ice routes and for those of us who treasure these ephemeral columns and sheets of frozen goodness, now is the time to sharpen those tools, pull-out the thin ropes and head up into RMNP for what will likely be a few more weeks of this short season.  This year's could be one of the better spring ice seasons on record if the current weather regime continues with some warm days between snow and cold fronts.  The forecast for this weekend looks favorable for the formation of more ice and hopefully safe enough conditions for this potentially dangerous climbing pursuit.

         The West Gully ice route nearby Black Lake mostly snow covered in April of 2008.

The south-facing ice in the high country, routes such as The Squid, Martha, New Beginnings, and other's on Flattop, Otis, and Notchtop Mountain seem to be doing well in the current climate and likely other south-facing venues such as on the Cathedral Wall and on Ypsilon could be growing some subsantially quality ice routes as I write this.  It's always a gamble on whether a route will be in "ideal form" on any given day, but the cold, snowy weather of current seems to be most favorable for these quick to form and quick to vanish ice routes in the high country of RMNP.

                         The Squid still hanging-on and maybe even growing on 4/26/08.

Firm snow on the trails is making for relatively easy approaches and although there are some soft spots that may require a bit of post-holing, boot-only approaches were done this week to Notchtop and Hallett without serious difficulty.  Certainly skis would be preferred and snowshoes could help with traction as some of these hard-packed trails are very icy and sit above steep slopes of firm snow- the greatest risk in some areas could be on the approach!

            Swinging and singing on the Hummingbird Arete on the north face of Hallett Peak. 

Please contact me at   This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it   if you would like to discuss training in ice or mixed climbing, avalanche education, or any type of rock climbing, ski mountaineering or guide training programs. 

Routes are sorted by current Avalanche Danger Level:

LOW Avalanche Danger          

Necrophilia WI 5, M5	Deep Freeze   WI5, M5	Black Lake Slabs  WI 2
OUT	OUT	IN mostly buried

MODERATE Avalanche Danger

The Window WI 5,  M4	Vanquished WI 5,  M4	Hot Doggie WI 5+
OUT	OUT	OUT

CONSIDERABLE Avalanche Danger 

East Face of Notchtop WI 3+,  M1

IN  (heat-related sluffs and cornice collapses a potential hazard)